Gresham Barrett joins Greenville firm as policy adviser

Gresham Barrett joins Greenville firm as policy adviser

WESTMINSTER - Gresham Barrett said his life was saved when he lost his bid for governor in South Carolina.

The former congressman for South Carolina's 3rd District said Thursday that he has spent the last year resting and reflecting on his life. He has also become an active member of Anderson's New Spring Church, going so far as posting a five-minute testimonial on the church's website.

"I really feel in my heart that I'm right where the Lord wants me to be," Barrett said.

Barrett, 50, spent all of 2011 "chasing clients" at the helm of the Barrett Consulting Group, which he co-owned with his former chief of staff Darryl Broome.

He emerged this week as the newest senior policy adviser at the Nelson Mullins firm in Greenville. He started Tuesday, and he said his phone has not stopped ringing.

"We learned quickly," Barrett said of trying to start his own business. "My father told me ‘if you think it will take a year, you better add one more to it.' I was busy, but I wasn't getting paid for it."

Barrett has spent several months heading Rick Santorum's presidential campaign in South Carolina. He spoke to media outlets all over the country Wednesday after his candidate's strong showing in Iowa.

"Here's a guy who with literally no money, I know because I'm the chairman, and gobs of volunteers, worked his keister off and did it the old-fashioned way," Barrett said. "I am afraid that a lot of the larger states — the Californias, Nevadas, Texases, Floridas — they are trying to move their primaries up. The only way you play in a major market like that is with the bucks."

Barrett served in the U.S. Congress from 2003 to 2011. Before that he was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1996 to 2002.

He said Thursday that he's a firmer believer now than ever in term limits.

"The pace that these men and women go through — it's so demanding, not only on you physically but spiritually, mentally, emotionally," Barrett said. "And to have an opportunity for respite is a wonderful thing."

Barrett served on several major committees in Congress: financial services, foreign relations, energy and commerce. As part of the Nelson Mullins Government Relations Group, Barrett will help guide businesses in developing strategies in Washington.

He said he will not be lobbying and his work for businesses will not involve Republican or Democratic politics.

Also with the Nelson Mullins firm are former state House speaker David Wilkins, former governor Dick Riley and former congressmen Ron Klink of Pennsylvania and Alan Mollohan of West Virginia. The firm has government relations and lobbying operations in Washington, Atlanta, Boston, Columbia, and Raleigh.

Wilkins praised Barrett's "sunny optimism" in a statement from the firm.

Ideally, Barrett said, he will guide business to South Carolina.

"That's what I wanted to do as a governor," he said.

Barrett said he has spent the past year away from politics reacquainting himself with his wife and children, the youngest of whom is now a sophomore in college. He said he has also worked hard strengthening his faith.

"I thought I had a personal relationship with my Lord," Barrett said. "The old saying is true — hindsight is 20/20."

Barrett described a double life that he led in Washington — sharing pizza over football games with his D.C. roommates, Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, Illinois Rep. John Shimkus and Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise.

"It's a tough life," Barrett said. "You try to compartmentalize that and live a life in your hometown."

They all shared a four-bedroom flat, and he split his time between there and Westminster.

"It was a good arrangement because it gave us a lot of accountability," Barrett said. "There's a lot of mischief you can be in."

Today, Barrett still lives in his hometown, where his family owned a furniture business for decades. He commutes 50 miles one way in his Ford Focus from his farm in Westminster to the job in Greenville. He anticipates spending about a week a month in Washington.

"Having come fresh from Washington, within the last year, I hope I bring some value," Barrett said.